We had a lot of fun last year creating and sharing Shelley's story with you as part of TTLT's Giving Tuesday campaign. This year, we would like to introduce you to Finley the Fox (they/them).
Finley is about to go on a little adventure as we make our way to Giving Tuesday, and YOU get to help us tell Finley’s story! In this choose-your-own-adventure, you can help Finley decide what to do as they are faced with different opportunities along the way. You can respond to our Giving Tuesday emails or by heading to our social media pages to comment, message, and answer the polls posted there. You will have 24 hours to respond before we share the adventure path chosen by the majority of people. Let the adventure begin!
Choose-Your-Own-Adventure: Finley the Fox
Finley the Fox awoke to a beautiful summer morning. The sun was just starting to peek above the horizon as Finley and their four siblings scrambled out of the den to play in their favourite patch of meadow at the edge of the forest. Momma Fox was quick to follow and soon they were all rolling and jumping around together. In one of the tussles with their brother, Finley ended up rolling further into the 
meadow. When they righted themselves and opened their eyes, they were awestruck by a brightly coloured insect sitting on the leaf of a plant. Finley crouched low and watched it, keeping in mind all of the hunting lessons Momma and Poppa Fox had been teaching them. Just as Finley was getting ready to pounce, the brightly coloured insect ascended into the air and began to quickly fly away! Finley’s only thought was “I have to catch it” and so they proceeded to run after the insect at full speed, not paying attention to where they were going.
Before Finley knew it, they were further into the meadow than they had ever been before, and there was no sight or sound of their family. Trying not to panic, Finley began pacing and thinking about how to get back home. As they moved back and forth, a loud honking sound followed by a series of honking started somewhere to their right. Almost immediately after, a large splash sounded on their left. Momentarily distracted, Finley’s curiosity got the better of them.
Should Finley follow the honking sound or discover what made the splash?
The people have spoken: Finley the Fox follows the SPLASH!
Having decided, Finley moved toward the splashing sound and stumbled upon a wetland. All seemed relatively quiet on the surface, but something had made that splash. Finley crept up to the water’s edge and peered down, hoping to uncover its secrets. As Finley gazed at their reflection and the soft ripples on the water's surface from their 
breathing, something started to come into view below the surface. Finley turned their head in curiosity and quickly backed up as they realized that the “something” was coming right at them! Spooked yet intrigued, Finley watched as a dark green head with yellow lines poked through the water’s surface. A dark green body with red lines and a dark green shell followed the head. The little creature looked at them curiously and said, “Hello, little fox. I’m Shelley the Painted Turtle. Do you need help?” It took a few moments for Finley to work up the courage to say anything back, so when they finally did, it came out faster than the speed of light. “Hi. I’m Finley. I am looking for my family. Have you seen them?” Shelley shook her head, a look of regret on her face. “I’m sorry, little fox, but I have not. Can I help you find them?” Finley said, “That’s okay. I’ll be fine.” and turned away from the wetland.
As Finley made their way further from the wetland, a mouse darted out of the grass and quickly disappeared. It was heading into a more open area in the meadow and Finley wanted to follow it. Up above, they heard the hunting cry of a hawk. Finley hesitated.
Should Finley follow the mouse or hide from the hawk?
The people have spoken: Finley the Fox HIDES FROM THE HAWK!
Having decided, Finley hid from the hawk. They looked up periodically to see if the hawk was still there. After some time, the Hawk was nowhere in sight, so Finley felt it was safe enough to continue their journey back through the meadow.
Finley soon found themselves surrounded by an array of colourful flowers, some really tall and some really small. There were so many new sights and sounds that Finley completely forgot about what they were doing. They started to explore the area and noticed tall metal poles with photos and words at the top. It had the same colours as the surrounding flowers, maybe to help identify the plants?
As Finley continued to wonder about what and who would use such a thing, they heard voices. “Humans!” Finley thought. Momma Fox had always told them to be cautious around humans. Finley had only ever heard humans before and was curious about what they might look like. At the same time, Finley couldn’t stop hearing Momma Fox’s voice in their head.
Should Finley move closer to the humans or venture away from the humans?
The people have spoken: Finley the Fox VENTURES AWAY FROM THE HUMANS!
Having decided, Finley listened to their mother's cautionary advice and ventured away from the humans. It didn't take long before Finley started to hear other sounds faintly in the distance up ahead.
Moving closer, Finley discovered a road. Momma Fox had talked about roads before, but Finley had never seen one. It was much larger and colourless than they had imagined. They wondered what the purpose of it was. Momma Fox had only mentioned that roads could be dangerous, but never specifically why.
Finley scrambled into the ditch and up to the side of the road. Large, metal boxes whizzed by at an inconsistent rate, sending Finley ducking into the ditch for safety every time. When less metal boxes appeared, and the road was as quiet as Finley had ever seen it, they decided that it was safe enough to tentatively reach out a paw and touch the dark gray surface. It was flat and hard against their paw. Curious, Finley gave it a closeup sniff, which resulted in a mixture of smells entering their nostrils, one of which was raspberries. "Raspberries?" Finley 
thought. They looked up, excited to see a wild raspberry bush on the other side of the road and surprised by the loud, grumbling response from their stomach. It was late in the day and Finley hadn’t eaten much. They remembered passing a wild raspberry bush on the path they had just taken, but they had been too interested in the road to stop. The raspberries on the other side of the road were so close and Finley was so hungry.
Should Finley cross the road to get to the raspberries or go back for the raspberries on the path?
The people have spoken: Finley the Fox GOES BACK TO THE PATH!
As Finley wrestled with whether they should cross the road or not, their hunger grew. They started daydreaming about raspberries and finally decided that the safer option would be to go back to the wild raspberry bush along the path they had taken earlier.
Finley began making their way back to the bushes when they heard the sound of a twig snapping fairly close behind them. By this time, the sun had nearly set and it was much darker. Spooked by the twig and afraid of the dark, Finley took off as fast as they could towards the safety of the trees, which was just up ahead. Finley ran through the underbrush of the forest, not knowing which direction they were headed. It was darker in the forest and every new sight and sound had Finley on edge.
A large shrub loomed ahead of them and suddenly several sets of bright eyes appeared, staring out from the shrub. Finley dug in their back paws, scrambling to slow their progress and turn around as fast as they could. Before they could come to a complete stop, one of the sets of eyes flew out of the bushes and headed straight for Finley. Finley 
closed their eyes and collided with the shrub monster with a solid “thud”, resulting in Finley on their back and the shrub monster standing over them.
“We found you!” A familiar voice exclaimed from above. Finley opened their eyes and saw their sibling Flora smiling down at them and the rest of their family coming out of the shrub to greet Finley enthusiastically.
After a few minutes of sniffing, tussling, and yipping, Momma Fox announced that it was time for bed. All of the fox cubs started to run towards the den, all except Finley. Momma Fox looked around frantically, but heaved a large sigh of relief when they saw Finley was curled up and sleeping in the grass, tired from the day’s adventure. “Come now, my little adventurer.” Momma Fox said softly. Momma Fox walked over to Finley, gently picked them up, and carried them back home to the safety and sanctuary of their den.
